


The Girl with a Sword and a Mark on Her Hand

by awakened_treepanda



Series: Lady Luminary [1]
Category: Dragon Quest XI
Genre: Angst, F/M, Female!Hero/Luminary, Luminary is named Elrose, More tags will be added as this updates, One Shot Collection, Very Dumb, author is dumb, if it updates dun dun dun, one shots are not arranged in chronological order
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:22:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25644235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awakened_treepanda/pseuds/awakened_treepanda
Summary: In which the Luminary is reborn as a girl. This is the various shenanigans that occur because of it.(The fic nobody asked for but is going to get because I'm terribly self-indulgent and I love this ship)
Relationships: Camus | Erik/Hero | Luminary (Dragon Quest XI), Hero | Luminary & Rou | Rab (Dragon Quest XI), Hero | Luminary & Veronica (Dragon Quest XI)
Series: Lady Luminary [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881715
Comments: 53
Kudos: 57





	1. Just a girl from Cobblestone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No romance yet, just a brief intro to Elrose
> 
> EDIT: fixed a minor wording issue, thanks for pointing it out Panda <3

Elrose loved Cobblestone, she really did. While it was no Heliodor, with its massive castle and flourishing city (or so she'd been told), it was cosy and the people close-knit. It was like having one very big family; uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces, nephews and distantly related relatives all in a tiny nook within the mountains. 

But therein also lied the problem. Everyone knew everyone and everyone got in each other's business all the time. 

Normally, Elrose doesn't mind it. Normally, she even welcomes it because people butting in her business meant someone coming over to help her with fishing, someone gently guiding her fingers on the proper way to sew or someone teaching her how to mix and match herbs, vegetables and meat so she could surprise her mother with a birthday dinner. 

Now that she's just a week shy of adulthood, however...

The feeling of irritation is becoming more and more familiar. She hates it. There's a sense of guilt that clings to her whenever her annoyance starts to bubble up. She knows they mean well. She knows it's their way of caring for her. 

But there's only so much attempts at matchmaking she can take before she bursts from the sheer vexation she feels. 

She gets it. She really does. Most people start looking for their spouses at this point or have already found them. That's the Cobblestone way. 

Amber had been an exception because no one can ever get that woman to do something she doesn't want to. (And for that Elrose greatly admires her mother.)

Unfortunately, it seems like the village is making up for the one unmarried adult by harrying the daughter. 

"So, darling, have ya thought about it? 'e's a nice lad, a bit on the quiet side but I think ye would be a good pair wit 'im." 

Elrose sighs almost inaudibly. She hauls the last of the crates onto the back of the shop before wiping the sweat gathered on her forehead. 

"'e's pleasant," she says softly, hesitantly, as she dries her hand on the towel hanging from her belt. She remembers one sweltering afternoon, a kind smile and a hand reached out offering a water skein. He was nice. She could sort of see herself settling down with him if she gave it a chance. It would be a peaceful life, she thinks, littered with sweet, calm moments. 

But she also remembers the soft look in his eye when he glances at a particular bubbly blonde, the pink staining his cheeks when he asked Elrose about the things her best friend liked. 

"But I don' think we really match," she says. The shopkeeper sighs. She's a robust lady, kind if a little pushy and one of her mother's closer friends. She's one of the few that Elrose doesn't mind meddling with her love life. Others are less considerate of her own preferences. 

"Alright, ain't gon push ya on it no more." She grins at Elrose, a sort of childish mischief twinkling in her eye. "For today at least." 

Elrose wrinkles her nose. The woman laughs. "One day, I'm gon find someone that'll catch yer fancy and I'm gon rub it on all their faces."

Elrose snorts. Ah, yes. Did she mention that her love life has become a game? First to find a husband for Elrose wins bragging rights for being able to find a partner for the infamously uninterested lady-to-be. 

"Jus' a couple more days, love. You'll be an adult and you can do away wit all the matchmaking. They can't bug ya if yer out exploring the world after all," her mother reminds her at dinner. 

Elrose hums in response. The day she goes up the Tor couldn't come any sooner.

She takes back everything she said. Maybe they were onto something with the matchmaking. Maybe if she humored them, she'd have settled down, would have chosen to stay in Cobblestone and would never have to take nervous steps towards the King of Heliodor and tell him she was the hero of old reborn. Maybe she'd never have to feel the blood in her veins turn ice cold as the king looked at her with eyes burning in contempt and declared her the harbinger of darkness. 

Maybe if she had just followed their suggestions she wouldn't be here; tossed into a tiny jail cell with nothing but a dirty straw bed, two pots and the sheer terror she feels. 

(A lie. Even if she had somehow fallen in love and found a partner to settle down with, she would have never be able to shake off the need to see where the necklace her mother gave her would take her. What adventures it would lead to. Having a spouse would never have stopped her from leaving, she knows.)

They're going to Cobblestone, she thinks faintly. They're going to Cobblestone and there's nothing she can do to warn them, to protect them from the wrath she brought upon her home, her family, her mother-

Her breath hitches. She takes a sharp step back, her feet knocking onto the side of a pot and it breaks. The sound jars her out of her head for a moment before she exhales a shaky breath. 

She needs to stop the knights, needs to break out of this cell and keep them from harming her family, needs to- to do something. There has to be something- 

"Hey," a voice calls out, "breathe. In, slowly, and out."

Elrose obeys the voice without thinking. 

"Just like that. C'mon, one more time. In and out."

A moment passes of her simply inhaling and exhaling in measured breaths, her panic ebbing away with each breath passing her lips. 

"Thank you," she murmurs. There's a responding hum.

"What'd they put you down here for if you don't mind me askin'? You don't look like the type to be thrown in a cell." 

She hesitates for a split second. 

Would this stranger spit the word darkspawn with such vehemence just like the knight that dragged her down here? Would he scoff and tell her she deserved to rot in her cell? 

The man with the purple hair -- Hendrik? She thinks he was called -- effectively told her that she had three days left to live. 

If that was true...

What did she have left to lose?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dont know if I managed to capture the accent correctly. Maybe I'll just do away with it next time haha  
> ~Tree
> 
> Accent's fine, Tree. What you really need to worry about is if you'll end up including people from Hotto or Nautica.  
> ~Panda
> 
> OH MY WORD HOTTO  
> ~Tree


	2. World saving duties aside, she was a person just like everyone else

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elrose has a heart to heart with Rab

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LIGHT SPOILERS for when you reach Octagonia in act 1 (Just names really and that one scene lol, there's like no mention of what you do exactly)
> 
> Just in case there's someone reading who hasn't reached that point in the game (unlikely but we can never be too sure)

It started in Octagonia. 

Or maybe she'd been in denial for some time and only started accepting it then but nevertheless, the day they, their little merry band of five -- or as Erik likes to say, four and a half -- stepped foot in the underground city undoubtably served as a cataclyst. 

Because ever since she saw the way Sinderella puckered her plump tinted lips just the slightest bit before blowing kisses to the crowd and the way Whambelina walked with a surety in her steps and a sway to her hips that she knew was deliberate, she's been thinking about it. 

And then she saw the slightest hint of pink on pale cheeks, the aborted shift of usually confident, deft fingers and an averted gaze all because of an accusation of his being distracted by a woman' legs --

The thought became a comparison and then the comparison led to a self-awareness which led to a self-consciousness. 

Or to put it simply, Elrose was not curvy. Or blessed in ... certain areas. Or pretty. Or flirty. Or sensual. Or cute. Or even just fairly attractive. 

And that fact stung a little. 

Because she's slowly been coming to terms with the fact that she might just be hopelessly attracted to the blue-haired rogue with a well hidden tender heart.

Because she's starting to see that his fierce loyalty might not just be to her role, not to her as the Luminary, but to Elrose, the bumbling naive country bumpkin from Cobblestone. 

Because she was starting to hope that all of Sylvando's teasing, all of Veronica's good-natured ribbing and all of Serena's gushing meant more than just her feelings being so obvious everyone could see it but him.

That maybe he felt the same way. 

It's silly, she knows. Her mother always told her never to equate a person's worth to how they appear as. That just because she wasn't slight and delicate-looking like the others her age didn't mean she couldn't be pretty in her own way. 

Yet all the same, she can't help but wonder. 

If she were more elegantly disposed, had soft, slender, unblemished fingers -- if she was more like Serena--

(He was always so kind to their cleric. He treated her with a softness so uncharacteristic of him and yet not out of place. She can remember one night after a drawn out battle when Erik had come out with deep gashes. She remembers the distraught look in Serena's eyes as she hurried to stop the bleeding. She especially remembers him murmuring softly to the cleric, driving away the shakiness in Serena's glowing hands.) 

Or maybe if she were more confident in her own skin, if she moved with a deadly grace, if she was more like Jade--

(Jade had a sharp tongue, one matched only by their resident thief. There had been many nights filled with cutting remarks flowing as smoothly as the river in the Champs Sauvage between the two, softened only by the knowledge that they respected each other, as begrudging that respect may be. 

And the fact that there always seemed to be a flirty undertone to their exchanges. She hadn't really noticed until an off-hand comment from Sylvando and now she's hyperaware of them, of every word that passes their lips.)

Would he look at her then, and see her as a woman?

She laughs derisively to herself. How could he ever see her as a woman when she's just hit eighteen? There was nothing womanly about her. She was childish, simple-minded and easy to please. 

She marveled over the most basic things -- a flower she'd never seen before, a wanderer's journal left behind to occupy space on someone's shelf, a pastry she's never tasted. 

Every other woman they've met carried themselves with a sense of maturity. How could she ever compare?

"What's on yer mind lassie?" 

Rab gingerly sits beside her on the log she claimed after they had settled on the campsite. He hands her a small plain box. When she lifts the lid, her eyes widen to a comical degree because there, sitting innocently in the box were the bite-sized confectionaries she'd been eyeing in Phnom Nohn. 

"Now dunnae let anyone else see that. If word gets out I got ye a box and nobody else, Jade might throw a fit." 

Elrose giggles as Rab wiggles his eyebrows playfully. 

"Thank ya very much, granddad," she says before popping a piece into her mouth. She lets herself enjoy the sweet for a moment before she turns to look at her grandfather. 

"Could ya tell me more about me mum? If that's okay?" she asks quietly, tentatively. 

"Och, of course, El." He smiles tenderly, a tinge of sorrow at the corner of his lips. "What would ye like to know?"

"What did she look like?" There were few records of Dundrasil left in other parts of the world and none of them had provided pictures. None of the paintings in the ruins could be salvaged either.

"Well, for one thing ye have the same hair." Rab reaches out with a hand and Elrose tilts her head down. He runs gentle fingers through brown locks, the action soothing a part of her even as the rest of her was in turmoil. 

"It was brown just like yers, lassie, and just as soft too. It went down long enough for yer tiny little fingers to reach and grab on when she held ye in her arms."

"She had eyes that always carried a kindness and captivated anyone that looked at 'em. Heck, the moment I held yer mother in my arms as a babe and looked into her eyes I knew I'd do anything to keep my little girl happy." 

Rab sighs wistfully. "Ye have yer father's crystal blue, but everything else, from the shape of yer eyes to the light shining brightly in 'em ye get from yer mother, lassie."

A calloused hand comes up to rest at her cheek tenderly. 

"The moment I saw yer eyes, I knew it was you. Ye have the same warmth in 'em that gets people 'ta flock to ye. Of course the mark on yer hand was a dead giveaway too," he ends with a chuckle. 

The hand retreats and Rab smiles at her fondly but stained with a touch of somber.

"She sounds beautiful," Elrose says quietly. Nothing like the fumbling, silly, country hick her daughter turned out to be. Her eyes drift down to her hands resting in her lap, fidgeting against the fabric of her black tunic. 

"She was," Rab agrees. He lays a hand to settle on top of hers, stilling the restless movement. "She grew up to be a lovely lass, just like her daughter."

Her breath hitches.

"But one day, she started fretting over how she looked, how she behaved and what she wore when before, yer mother only ever cared about her books."

Rab chuckles. "It wasnae 'til later that I realized that was the day yer mother met yer father."

Elrose swallows before tentatively raising her eyes to look at her grandfather's knowing gaze. 

"She had worried endlessly, knowing there were plenty others vying for yer father's attention. Never noticing that he only ever had eyes for her."

Seconds pass in silence as her mind picks apart her grandfather's words. Then understanding dawns. 

"It's not the same," she whispers. "He doesn't- I'm not-"

She stops. Halts the words from tumbling out of her mouth because there's a gathering wetness in her eyes that threaten to spill if she continues to speak. 

"My dear El, I cannae say for certain if he returns yer affection. The lad's harder to read than a book written in the age of heroes." 

She stutters out an exhale. She thought as much. 

"But I know this. Yer beautiful El. Don't ever doubt that. Och, ye look so much like yer mother sometimes I think I've been sent to the past when I look at ye." 

Rab takes her hands into his and squeezes. 

"Ye donnae have 'ta change a thing about yerself, lassie. There'a nothing wrong with ye." 

"Thank ye granddad." 

"Think nothin' of it. Now, I think ye better eat yer sweets before Jade sees."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be a lighthearted silly little thing
> 
> Also, funfact:
> 
> The origin of the name Elrose starts out like this.
> 
> Panda had been griping about the ridiculousness of naming your child Eleven and mentioned some of the alternative names other fics use. She mentioned how fics w a genderbent El also used a diff name, Elrose. 
> 
> Now when I finally managed to kick my ass into writing this, I'd been dead set on using Elrose. Then people started commenting on how they liked that name and I was all, nah, I can't take the credit. On a whim, I decided to look back to my convo with Panda cus maybe I could find the fic that used it so I could give credit. 
> 
> So I scrolled through our msgs, steadily growing more confused when I couldn't find one mention of Elrose. Then I found the exact moment we talked about the names. 
> 
> And it wasn't Elrose that was used. It was Eliza. 
> 
> To this day I still don't know where I got Elrose exactly.


	3. Local Girl Breaks Out of Prison

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What it says on the tin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!Fair warning, this hasn't been proofread!!
> 
> My motivation waxes and wanes like the tides and it shows.

"She's just a girl! How hard could it be to catch her?" the guard grumbles. "Was it really necessary to send in this many of us? Cor, it stinks down here."

He turns at a corner and comes face to face with the girl his squadron had been sent after, face devoid of any emotion. Before he can even open his mouth, she draws her sword, still in its sheath, and slams the hilt onto the area just below his chest. The guard keels over, feels his scarf loosened just enough to expose his neck followed by a sharp pain and then blacks out.

Elrose helps her hooded companion tuck the guard away into a dark corner. Together, they lower him onto the floor slowly, mindful of the metal armor.

"Wonderfully executed," the green-clad man tells her after they've all but abandoned the unconscious guard. If she squints, she can sort of make out a sharp grin curving along the man's lips.

"Thank ya kindly," she responds with a smile of her own. At the back of her mind, a voice that sounds like her mother chides her for the vindictive satisfaction she feels. They're only doing their job, it says. She ignores it; she can feel guilty about her actions when she's made it out. If she makes it out. 

The two take off towards the now emptied pathway, Elrose doing her best to keep her steps as silent as her companion was effortlessly doing. It isn't long before they encounter yet another guard, only this time, they don't have a chance to ambush him.

"They're over here!" he yells.

Elrose hears her companion curse as she rushes forward with her sword drawn. The guard predictably dodges her swing only to lose his balance when he steps right into a leg sweep. As soon as he's down, the hooded stranger quickly knocks him out.

Elrose tenses when she hears the sound of rushing footfalls drawing ever closer to their location, the sound spurring her to hastily step over the Heliodoran guard -- she silently offers an apology for the callousness -- before breaking out into a run. Her companion falls into step with her easily.

They race down the damp stone floors of the sewers only to be cut off as a group of soldiers suddenly walk into view from the corner further up ahead. No time to think, she and the hooded stranger take a sharp turn onto the crumbly-looking bridge leading to another section of the sewers.

The stone underneath their feet gives and next thing she knows, she's falling into the murky water, dragged to goddess knows where by the unrelenting torrents.

Silently, she prays to the goddess not to let her go out like this.

Nevermind, drowning hurts less than being burned alive by dragon fire. Oh great goddess, she'd like to take back her prayer, is that alright? Oh wait, she's still alive.

Her thoughts are brought to a hard stop when she hears the clunk of metal and heavy footfalls approach where she and her companion are hunched over gasping. She's roughly yanked upright and then they're running again. She nearly stumbles over the smoking debris, still worn out from her earlier sprint, but she grits her teeth and forces her legs to keep moving.

A dead-end. All that running just for them to reach a dead-end. She takes a peak over the edge of the cliff and sees a lake. Or maybe not. Her heart beats faster in her chest. It's a long way down but…

When she turns to her companion, she can see him coming to the same conclusion from the determination in his eyes. 

Jump and risk dying or get captured and die anyway.

"Well, before we go risk our lives," the man pulls his hood back, revealing soft blue, spiky locks and matching bright blue eyes, "the name's Erik."

An almost manic smile curves unbidden on her lips. "I'm Elrose."

Behind them, one of the guards yells at them not to do anything stupid. Her smile widens when Erik raises his middle finger to the man. There's a responding cry of outrage but she doesn't hear it -- all she registers is the slight nod from the blue-haired man.

And then they jump.

When she comes to, she finds herself staring at blue eyes peering at her amusedly, their owner draped loosely over a chair beside her.

"You sleep like the dead, did you know that?" he says, the corner of his lips curved upwards. She did, in fact, know that. Gemma always teased her about it, sometimes coming into the house while she was still asleep to mess with her face or hair. It was also something that used to drive her mother up the wall before she gave up and arranged their schedules around Elrose's sleeping habit. The other villagers in Cobblestone also-

Oh goddess, Cobblestone.

She shoots up, practically flying off the bed in her haste to get up. It startles Erik enough he almost falls off the chair. She doesn't notice, caught up as she was in her frantic search for her satchel.

"Hey! Slow down!"

"I can't," the words spill out of her mouth, "I can't, they're going to Cobblestone and I need to get home before they do or- or-"

"Hey, breathe, in and out," he says the same way he did back when she felt suffocated by the terror pushing down on her, amplified by the smallness of her cell, when he was just a calming voice coming from the stranger in the cell across hers.

Just as she did then, she obeys, the panic gradually receding, leaving only a steely determination. She looks him in the eye.

"I need to get home," she tells him, voice soft but the conviction no less evident.

"Okay," he responds, the hands on her shoulders -- when did they get there? -- falling back to his side. She smiles at him then. So this is goodbye, she thinks.

There's a part of her that doesn't want him to leave, wants to cling to the camaraderie they had built while running through the sewers of Heliodor. He has a life of his own though, she reminds herself. Cor, he's an actual criminal -- though something tells her he's not quite as dangerous as his title sounds. Nevertheless, it's probably best they split now. Elrose brushes past him, moving towards the door.

A hand darts out to circle around her wrist, strong enough to keep her from moving but not enough to bruise. She turns to face him, startled.

"I'll go with you," Erik says with a devilish grin, "you're not getting rid of me that easily."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Google search: how to knock someone out


	4. The Desert Heat is Certainly Something

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the luminary gets a makeover.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not proofread!
> 
> I tried to fix whatever mistakes I could find but I can't guarantee it's error free
> 
> Edited 8/21/20, adjusted the formatting bc I didn't like the spacing haha

It was hot. Almost unbearably so. 

They were near drenched in their own sweat by the time they reached the massive gates of the city of Gallopolis -- or well Elrose was, the twins were fairing better with their cotton dresses. Erik had the worst of it, though. His tunic practically stuck to his skin with how soaked it was. Elrose politely looks away when he tugs the neckline looser. 

"You look like a wet rat," Veronica says to Erik, disdain clear in her eyes. Elrose sighs. Here they go again. 

"No thanks to you," Erik says sharply. "Don't think I didn't notice you were using that new ice spell you learned to cool yourself."

Veronica huffs. "For your information, I was using it mainly on the poor overheated lady beside you. She's never had to deal with this kind of heat before, in case you forgot."

Elrose glances at the mage, eyebrows raised. She hadn't noticed Veronica cast a spell on her at all. Although that does explain the odd cooling sensation she felt occasionally while she sliced her way through the monsters that attacked them. She thought the heat had gone to her head. 

Erik narrows his eyes before he turns to Elrose with a significantly less hostile gaze. "You okay?"

"She made it this far didn't she?" Veronica says snidely. Erik's left eye twitches. 

"I'm fine. Could definitely use a change of clothes, though." Elrose smiles wryly. 

"Oh, that's a wonderful idea!" Serena claps her hands. "I've heard the fashion in Gallopolis is quite unique. I'd love to have a look at them. Perhaps we can taste the local delicacies as well." 

"Impromptu shopping trip, let's go!" Veronica cheers as she grabs a hand hanging limply at Elrose's side and tugs her towards the busy street lined with various stalls and their colorful canopies.

"Oh sure, it's not like we're on some kind of super important mission or anything," Erik grumbles. Elrose gives him a helpless smile over her shoulder. He sighs. 

"What's with all the buzz around here, anyway? There a festival or somethin'?"

"As a matter a fact, there's a horse-racing event that usually happens right around this time of the year," Veronica says condescendingly as she guides the luminary to a stall proudly displaying what looks to be Gallopolitan wear. 

"Well then, while you're busy having fun, I'm gonna head off to the tavern, see what I can find out. Meet me when you're done gallivanting around."

"Thank you, Erik. We won't take too long." Elrose hopes so anyway. It couldn't be that hard to find her a set of clothes, could it? She's not particularly picky. 

Erik waves them off with a two-fingered salute then he takes off, disappearing into the crowd. 

"I wonder if I can get him a set, too," she wonders to herself. His tunic was practically soaked; it couldn't be pleasant having to walk around in it. 

"What a killjoy." Veronica frowns at the direction Erik wandered off to. "C'mon, El, I spotted a promising little stall further down, let's check it out."

The 'little stall' turned out to be a full blown store inside a single story building. There are several mannequins lined on one side of the room, all dressed in colorful outfits. There's one particular set that catches her eye -- a rather loud purple number that seems more like a glorified set of underwear rather than everyday wear. 

Elrose feels her cheeks warm. She couldn't imagine anyone willingly wearing that out into the world. She turns to her companions and nearly has to do a double-take when she sees Serena -- Serena of all people! -- eyeing the outfit consideringly. 

"Hello, travelers! If you're looking for desert-appropriate travel wear, you've come to the right place!" the elderly shopkeeper greets them, drawing her attention away from the bewildering sight. 

"We're looking for something that'll fit this lady over here," Veronica responds as a small hand comes up to pat Elrose's hip twice in quick succession. "Something that'll hold up in a battle."

"Hmm," the elderly woman squints at Elrose, scanning her from top to bottom. She tries not to squirm. 

"I have a couple pieces that just came in, infused with a bit of magic and made of hardy stuff. Haven't gotten around to displaying them yet. Give me a moment to fetch them."

The shopkeeper returns with an armful of bunched fabric that she sets onto the counter. "Don't let their light weight fool you. I've seen these types get lobbed with all kinds of spells and come out alright."

Elrose gingerly picks up a pastel pink piece, holding it up to see how it looks. It's rather showy, its hem lined with golden ornaments but it looks comfortable enough. She doesn't quite know how to feel about all the skin it leaves exposed though. 

"Oh, I think this would look ever so lovely on you, Elrose!" Serena brings over a turquoise set with a bright smile on her face. "I can sense some strong enchantments as well. It will most certainly last in a fight."

She puts down the pink top and takes the clothes in Serena's hands. She runs her fingers over the soft material of the clothes for a moment before she holds it up. Its sleeveless and the hem cuts off at her midriff. A portion of her back would be exposed as well but for the most part she thinks she'd be comfortable in it. 

"Can I try it on?" she asks with a twinkle in her eye.

Elrose looks appraisingly into the mirror tucked into the corner of the shop. The turquoise halter top stretches across her chest comfortably, not too tight not too loose. Her skirt is long, ending just above her ankles and opens up on both sides, showing the beige tights underneath. On her waist, a golden belt fits snugly to her body, effectively covering the waistband of her skirt. 

On her arms are a pair of loose sleeves that cinch around her wrists with a gold band. Stretched across the back of her hands are triangular pieces of cloth secured to the gold ring on her middle finger. She also has a hood draped over her head and around her shoulders -- which is probably her favorite part of the outfit if she's honest; she'd been terribly jealous of Erik's hood while they trudged through the dessert under the scorching sun. 

"What do you think?" the elderly shopkeeper asks. 

She looks- 

She looks pretty good actually. Gemma would have been delighted to see her dressed much more femininely than she normally does. Elrose can see it in her mind's eye, the way her best friend would gush and hover around Elrose, can hear the familiar teasing tone Gemma would use as she asked Elrose if she was trying to impress someone. Elrose smiles wistfully. She hopes the blonde was okay, wherever she was. 

At the corner of her eye, she can see Veronica nod with a satisfied look on her face. 

"We'll take this one," she says to the shopkeeper. Before Elrose can reach for her bag, Veronica hands a fistful of coins to the elderly woman before proceeding to drag Elrose out of the shop and into the bustling streets of Gallopolis.

"I could 'ave paid for that," Elrose mumbles. 

Veronica waves her off. "We share funds anyway, it's not like it matters. Now come on, let's go find that sourpuss."

On their way to the tavern -- and after getting sidetracked when Serena couldn't resist the smells wafting from the food stalls -- Elrose finds herself strangely drawn to an innocuous book sitting on the corner of one of the stalls they pass by. With permission from the vendor, she leafs through the book and discovers it's an instructional manual for Gallopolitan styled clothes. 

"This a special one, miss. The only one of its kind. I reckon it's a part of a collection judging from the logo on the front. You'll need a special tool to able to make it, though. A funny prize gorge or something." 

An idea forms in her mind then and Elrose decides to buy the book. She has the ore needed for the breastplate and the gold for the accessories. She still has some spare thread she'd salvaged from Cobblestone so it seems all she needs left is the fabric. 

She's pretty sure she passed by a stall selling purely textiles of all kinds. She'll drop by after they speak to the sultan. Judging by the brightness of the sun, it seems they've spent more time at the clothing store than expected. 

Best not to keep Erik waiting.

When they reach the tavern, they find Erik seated at a table, significantly dryer and chatting up a woman. He's leaning on the palm of his hand, a looseness to his limbs where they'd normally be tense in anticipation of a fight. His mouth is curved into a friendly smile as he listens attentively while his eyes are half-lidded and trained entirely on the woman -- who seemed to be mildly flustered yet pleased at the same time? Elrose isn't entirely sure. 

Are they ... flirting? Is this what flirting looks like? It seems close enough to how Gemma had described it to her some time ago. 

Veronica coughs loudly. Erik glances at them from the corner of their eye before he excuses himself from the tittering lady.

"And what, pray tell, were you doing?" Veronica squints up at him, hands on her hips. 

"Gathering information," is his clipped answer to the mage before he turns his attention to Elrose. "Seems like the sultan's been preoccupied with something all day. He's been turning away every visitor he's had. Word has it he's been obsessing over the speech he's supposed to give on the day of the horse-racing festival." 

He's mid-snort when he suddenly stops.

"Is there something on my face?" She asks him when he does nothing but stare blankly at her. Maybe there were crumbs still left around her lips from the curious little pastry Serena shared with her. 

"Uh, no. It's nothing." He coughs. 

"What do we do now?" Serena asks.

And isn't that the million coin question. If it really came down to it, she supposed Erik could steal the rainbough from the palace once they figured out where exactly it was but she'd rather avoid any criminal activity. No need to add more fuel to the darkspawn propaganda.

"What's everyone crowding for over there?" 

Elrose glances down at Veronica before turning to look at where the mage has her gaze pointed towards. There's a young man walking beside a stallion, reins in one hand and waving at the crowd with the other. 

"Oh! Prince Faris! Please look this way!" 

"Prince Faris! I'm your biggest fan!"

"You're gonna blow the competition away tomorrow, your Highness!"

"Yeah! Prince Faris!"

"Your Highness, please pick me for your date!"

"So that's the infamous prince of Gallopolis," Veronica says, words near inaudible from the sheer volume of the crowd. "He doesn't look like much." 

"I agree," Erik says only to realize what he just said and his face crumples. "Oh Yggdrasil, I just agreed with Veronica."

Elrose can't help the snicker that tumbles out of her mouth. Laughter settling down, she returns her attention to the prince. While she wouldn't have worded it that way, the prince did seem kind of ... plain.

It's easy to tell he's royalty by the quality of his clothes and the way he walks but for some reason she doesn't feel much of a presence coming from him. It's quite different from the heavy tension she felt around King Carnelian or the regal bearing that surrounded High Priestess Miko. 

Perhaps there are royal figures that are approachable after all. 

Erik nudges her arm with an elbow. "What'cha thinking about, El? You've got this look in your eye that just screams 'I'm planning something'." 

"What if we had a lil chat with the prince?"

"A chat? You mean if we threatened him? I didn't know you had it in you," Erik looks at her, eyes wide and one brow cocked upward.

Elrose splutters. "That's not what I meant!" 

She hears a soft giggle that sounds suspiciously like Serena. 

"I just thought maybe we can talk to the prince instead, see if we can get him to ask his father for the-"

"Excuse me!" the prince bellows at the crowd. Elrose is startled into closing her mouth. "You over there!" 

Everyone in the crowd turns to look at her. Silently, she brings up a hand to chest-level, curling every finger except her index to point at herself. 

"Me?" she says weakly. 

"Yes, beautiful, you!" 

Elrose blinks. Hard. The prince is steadily making his way towards her through the now parted crowd. 

She's not hallucinating is she? Had she touched one of Yggdrasil's roots without noticing? Or maybe the heat has finally gotten to her.

She blinks again. The prince is now in front of her. 

"Hello there, lovely, would you do me the honor of accompanying me to the exclusive performance at the circus tonight?"

What? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Luminary's outfit inspired mostly by Link's Gerudo outfit and [this](https://i.pinimg.com/236x/9c/cc/1d/9ccc1d4c1f3327f030dec23b5b608ed8.jpg)
> 
> I AM UPSET THAT TREE POSTED THESE CHAPTERS WITHOUT LETTING ME PROOFREAD THEM. I will admit they didn't need proofreading though. Maybe like one comma at most.  
> ~Panda


	5. Sometimes You Just Can't Help But Forget Some Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And sometimes, those things are very important things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Caution:  
> Mentions of blood (very mild, light descriptions only in one or two sentences in the first paragraph)  
> Rated T(hat one curse) 
> 
> Other than that, this still rated G

In hindsight, it was pretty obvious. The frequent sweating, the vague feeling of discomfort coming from her pelvic area and the fatigue that's been plaguing her were all signs she was familiar with. These were things she knew to look out for.

But she'd brushed it off.

Sweating when she's done nothing but leisurely walk through the streets of Heliodor? Probably because she was due to meet the king; she's just nervous.

The vague discomfort coming from below her abdomen? Well, she's in the middle of the very illegal act of escaping the castle dungeons. She's suitably anxious.

The fatigue weighing down her body? She's just fought her way through a group of soldiers, narrowly escaped being cooked alive and jumped off a cliff. Not to mention that she's also been agonizing over the looming threat to her village. Anyone would be exhausted.

So when she feels the odd sensation of something warm trickling out from between her legs and a clenching pain that has her curling her fingers into a tight fist, she is, quite frankly, utterly gobsmacked.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she hears Erik whisper to her, concern coloring his tone when he notices Elrose was standing unnaturally stiff. He rises from where he'd been crouched near a garbage pile he had been rifling through, brushing away the bits that clung to his gloves.

"I-" she tries to respond when another wave of pain has her grimacing. She wraps her arms tightly around her pelvic area and lower abdomen in a vain attempt to curb the clenching feeling.

"Cramps," she tells him, managing to sound calm even as it feels like the muscle in her pelvic area is being squeezed within an inch of its life. It hits her just then that she has nothing in her smallclothes to stem the flow of what she now recognizes is her blood.

"Erik," she says evenly as the pain starts to fade into something more tolerable but still uncomfortable, "I'm bleeding."

"What? Why didn't you say something sooner?" The thief hurries to her side and starts to circle around her, looking for any sign of injury all the while one of his hands slide through the front of his tunic, above the laces.

"I'm not injured," she responds just as he pulls out a medicinal herb. If she weren't so focused on the fact that she was bleeding through the only pair of pants and undergarments she had, she'd probably wonder how in Erdrea he managed to keep that in his tunic.

"I'm on the rag," she whispers to him urgently.

"You're what? What does that-" Erik pauses, eyes growing distant. "Oh."

"Okay, I've got a friend that owns an inn in these parts." He gently eases her out of her hunched position and tugs her along in a hurried pace through the narrow street. "She can help you out. Ruby never turns away people in need."

They come to stop in front of a haphazard looking two-story wooden structure. There aren't any doors at the entrance, allowing them to see the unmanned reception desk. Elrose follows Erik inside, grimacing at the wet feeling of her small cloths.

"I'll check upstairs if she's there," he says before making his way up to second floor. Even with his light footing, Elrose can still hear the creaking of the floorboards as he searches through the upper area of the inn. It makes her wonder about the safety of the building.

"She's not here." Erik's frowning as comes back into view at the stairs. "Do you mind if you waited here while I look for her? I'll be quick."

She nods. There's nothing else she can really do. Erik leaves and then she's left to the silence of the inn.

  
Elrose looks up from where she's huddled into a corner of the inn when she hears a steady footfall approach. There's plump woman with red hair and a matching red tunic walking in.

"'ello there, you must be the friend Erik mentioned." The woman, Ruby she recalls, offers her a warm smile.

"Sorry to intrude m'am." Elrose straightens up in an effort to be polite.

"Oh none of that now. You just go on to that door over there just behind ya. It's a lil room I use when I ain't got time for a trip to the river."

The woman ushers her to the said door before heading to the reception desk. Elrose sees her bend down to scour through the items she had stored under as she mumbles, "Now where did that rag go. Got'a find somethin' for a skirt too."

She doesn't notice until she's moved to one of the inn's rooms, freshly changed into a long worn skirt that Erik hadn't come back with Ruby.

"The lil tea leaf's gone off to see Derk up in the nicer parts of the city. Promised 'e'd be back soon."

Ruby steps into the room holding a steaming tin of something. Tea probably, judging by the smell -- a sort of herb-like scent she doesn't quite recognize.

"'ere, to 'elp with the awful achin'." Ruby hands over the tin with an empathetic smile. Elrose takes it gratefully and blows gently onto the surface of the liquid. When she deems it cool enough, she takes a small sip.

There's a vague hint of something she can't pinpoint but otherwise, it doesn't really taste like much. Not that she really cares. She's grateful to have something warm to drink at all.

"Thank you very much, m'am."

"Ya welcome, luv. Now, I gotta go back downstairs but if ya need anythin' jus' gimme a 'oller."

She's just taken another sip from the tin when the door to the small room opens again, this time revealing Erik holding a package wrapped in parchment and sealed with twine under one arm.

"Here, to replace your pants and uh, yeah. It's made of the good stuff so it'll last for a long while. If it doesn't, well, I can always give Derk a visit," he says, his demeanor shifting into something almost hostile towards the end.

"Did," she starts hesitantly as she takes the package from him, "somethin' happen when you met him?"

"Hm?" He turns to her and the look disappears. "No, nothing happened."

"Anyway, it's getting late, there's stuff I need to tell you but it can wait in the morning. I'll be in the next room. Night, El." Erik offers her a smile that doesn't quite feel as nonchalant as it tries to come across. As he leaves the room, she can hear him mutter in an incredulous tone, "while I was ... got hitched..."

"Goodnight Erik," she says quietly as the door closes. There's something bothering him, that much she can tell but she doesn't have it in her to pry. Not when she's been trying to clamp down on the urge to just up and make a run for it to Cobblestone. Every moment spent away from her village has her anxiety growing like a fungus.

Neither of them sleep well that night.

Erik knocks on the door early in the morning, when the sky is still dim and the air still cool enough to have Elrose hug the thin blankets close.

"El? You awake?" he asks, voice slightly muffled by the wood separating them.

Yeah, she thinks, have been for a while. She woke up early enough that she's already changed the rag in her smallclothes, tidied up the bed and sorted through her few belongings. She had tried for a quick nap after but she'd been too restless to fall unconscious.

She slides out of the bed already wearing the new pants she'd been given. The skirt Ruby lent her had been folded and left in the small closet in the room. She grabs her purple tunic from the foot of the bed and tugs it on sluggishly before blindly reaching for her bag on the floor.

With her now somewhat travel ready, she opens the door, careful not to make a sound and gives him a tired smile. "Let's go then."

When they make it downstairs, Ruby is already at the reception desk, humming some nondescript tune as she flips through a journal.

"Hey, Ruby. We'll be heading out," Erik says quietly.

"Oh, before you go," Ruby beckons Elrose to her, "got a lil somethin' for ya."

Confused, Elrose walks over to her, meeting her behind the desk and is handed a pouch of something that smells like the tea she'd drank last night.

"T'was your first day, yeah? This should last ya 'til the next town ya stop at. It ain't pleasant to travel with that awful achin' after all," Ruby says with a light chuckle.

Elrose tries to protest, lightly pushing the pouch back towards the kind woman but Ruby is insistent. Erik takes the pouch then and without a word, tucks it into her satchel. She turns to him, shock marring her features and mouth left open from a half-formed protest.

"You might as well give in," he says with a smile that feels genuine, "Ruby never takes no for an answer when it comes to helpin' people. 'specially if it's women down on their luck."

Ruby hums, looking triumphant. "Now, you come 'ere Erik. Elrose, love, would you mind if you waited outside? This'll be quick."

She does as she's told, and as promised, Erik joins her just moments after. There's a flush on his face that has her eyebrows rising so high it feels like they've gone up to her hairline.

"C'mon let's go," he says, resolutely looking straight ahead as he starts to walk down the street towards the entrance to the Heliodorian foothills. Elrose follows him instinctively, attention caught entirely on the redness on his cheeks and the tips of his ears.

It's such a foreign expression, something she'd never have thought to see on her companion that it makes her forget her worries for just that moment.

Bonus:

"Erik," Ruby turns to him with a stern expression on her face, "I know Derk 'urt ya and it'll take time for that to 'eal."

Erik grits his teeth at the mention of his erstwhile partner but he nods, fully aware there was more Ruby wants to tell him.

"Just remember not to let that get in the way between you and that lass, yeah? She's a nice lady if a little inexperienced than your usual partners. She's a 'eck of a lot better for ya than Derk, I can tell ya that."

"It's not- We're-!" He lets out a long exhale. "We're not like that. She's...too important for that kind of thing. I can't mess it up."

It's the only way he'll be able to atone for what he's done. He's not going to fuck up his chance just because the luminary's kinda cute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This'll probs be the last chapter for a long while because classes are starting again soon and I know college is going to kick my ass so hard I'm gonna feel it all the way to next year ahah. 
> 
> So yeah, thanks to all the people still reading this and enjoying my self-indulgent writing! Your comments have made me so happy and have honestly helped with the back-to-school jitters hhhh.
> 
> (Also, going through the chapters on pc is so weird. I'm so used to reading on mobile that the format looks off on pc. My formatting looks so much better on the phone hhhhhh)
> 
> Special thanks to Panda for correcting all my typos <3 Love ya bae


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